Sidney Hotel's Rebirth
In 1963 Roland Paquette purchased the new Hotel Sidney property which sat on five lots, it was the only Hotel in Sidney and it did not take very long for the whole family to be involved in the business.
1967 was B.C’s centennial year and the pub was renovated to reflect this special event. The Ladies and escorts partitions were taken down (in those days women were not allowed on the men’s side), new red velvet curtains were installed with matching red terry table cloths (to absorb the beer) .A colorful wool carpet was laid. ( wool does not burn when a cigarette is dropped on it).A feature rock wall by Fernando was flanked with a ‘ Centennial Tree’. Permission was granted to install the first coin operated pool tables allowed in a pub.
In 1969 three waterfront lots were purchased and the last of the old Cannery buildings (a seaweed processing plant) was demolished. That year was a provincial election year and bars had to close on Election Day.
The exterior wall on the cocktail lounge previously covered in Aviation drapery was opened up. Roland cut the 2x6 wall with a chain saw and his partner Conrad Schiller built the windows. When the bar opened that night at 8PM it had a spectacular view of the waterfront. When the liquor inspector came in his comment was ‘that was a good idea’. (Bars were previously not allowed to be visible.)
In 1976, 28 new hotel rooms were built in a separate wing attached to the old building.
The cocktail bar and dining room were expanded and a swimming pool with Sauna room was built in 1978.The pool was used by the community as an indoor public pool until in 1979 after much debate it was drained , boarded over and turned into a cabaret, complimenting both the bar and dining room.
Roland had managed to purchase most of the lots on the block by 1980 and on Christmas Eve 1987 an offer was made and accepted to purchase the last key piece of property that would consolidate all the properties into one waterfront block.
An opportunity presented itself in the form of Scuba Diving and the provincial government came on board promoting B.C. as a world class destination for scuba diving.
Denis took to the road and in 1981 landed his first scuba Diving charter. Twenty divers drove out from Red Deer Alberta and in the middle of winter were able to complete their open water diving certificate. They stayed for three nights. The dive packages included meals, tanks, weights and air, boats and accommodation.
The hotel registered over 2000 diver nights by 1990 during the quiet winter months. The hotel had its own bus and boat. There was a scuba shop on site and a locker for each diver and their gear.
In 1983 the pub was completely renovated into a marine theme with lots of brass and cedar. A super efficient heat pump system was installed and there was a 100% change of air in the pub every 10 minutes.
The booze business was good (there were lineups to get into the bar every morning), room business was strong and the food business was excellent. We had great staff, a great product and a great location, success was just a matter of continual hard work.
This was the beginning of the no smoking era. More Information Hotel Sidney BC >>>
For more hotel information please call
(250) 656-1131 or 1-888-656-1131 or fax (250) 656-9396
